


Love blooms, little Maude

by Fogfire



Category: Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-23
Updated: 2018-10-23
Packaged: 2019-08-06 13:09:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,197
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16388315
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fogfire/pseuds/Fogfire
Summary: warning: douchebags and happy endings ahead





	Love blooms, little Maude

**Plan**

„Aww, come on Petra, you know it’s going to be fun.“ Will said when she stepped into the nurses’ station. He beamed at her, all messy black hair and big puppy eyes and Petra turned around as fast as she could.

„You told him?!“ She asked Conny accusingly but Conny just rolls her eyes.

„Of Course, duh. He’s my boyfriend, you’re my best friend. He knows what I know… Plus Scott is his friend.“

„I’m not going on a blind date,“ Petra insisted and grabbed a PADD from the pile, „And that’s final.“

„No it’s not,“ Conny grabs two PADDs and throws one towards Will who catches it with ease, „It’s been way too long since your last relationship, you haven’t dated anyone since forever and stop blaming your lack of love life on the Krall incident because it’s been what, three months? The Enterprise crew isn’t going to be sitting around here forever and Will says Scott is decent.“

„I’m not going to date someone who’s just decent,“ Petra argued again, checking the data on her PADD and walking away.

„Decent is better than no one!“ Conny called after her but Petra ignored.

She wasn’t going on this blind date. No, she wasn’t.

-

„I cannae believe it’s only a few days until ye leave, lass,“ Scotty mumbles and hands Jaylah a screwdriver while looking over her shoulder,  „’m gonna miss ye, yanno?“

„I am going to miss you too, Montgomery Scotty. I am still sorry about Lieutenant Romane,“ Jaylah answers and unlooses another screw on the bolt over their heads.

„Ach, donnae be sorry, lass, we’re still gonnae be friends, me and Lieutenan’ Romane. Jus’ dinnae work ou’, that’s all…“ He stops talking when she unlooses the last screw.

„Now careful, lass, that’s quite a heavy bolt, just move it a wee bi’.“

„It is stuck,“ Jaylah announces, annoyed of yet another disturbance in her work. She pulls a bit harder.

„Donnae pull too hard, lass, jus’ a wee-“ Scotty says and leans forward to help her when the bolt gives away. He doesn’t get to finish his sentence when Jaylah stumbles backward and they both come crashing down towards the floor.

There’s the sickening sound of a head hitting the hard metal of the grating, followed by the much louder noise of the bolt falling out of Jaylahs hands and onto the floor.

The bolt isn’t important, Scotty is.

„Are you okay, Montgomery Scotty?“

He looks up at her but his eyes won’t focus on her face. He doesn’t answer, doesn’t lift his hand and his face is pale.

„Scotty?“ She asks again and alarms the other workers, sitting down next to him, „Can you hear me?“

He groans and blinks sluggishly and the weight of fear and guilt eases off Jaylah’s shoulders, even if only a little bit.

-

„You’re still insistent?“ Will asks when Petra comes back to the nurses’ station for a coffee.

Petra sighs. „Is he really just decent?“ She asks and Will gives her his best smile.

„You need to ask Peter for more information, I don’t know Scott that well but he seems nice and he’s single and it’s only one date. You deserve to have a bit fun, you know? Just put on a nice dress, leave your hair open for once and enjoy a good meal. If he’s not your type, you won’t ever have to see him again, I promise.

“Petra sighs again.

„You’re lucky we’re childhood friends,“ she tells him and rolls her eyes when he smiles excitedly.

„So you’re gonna go? Great! I’m gonna text him right away. Do you still have that black dress Conny gave you last year? … Yes? Great, wear that. And your blue purse… He’s going to wear a black leather jacket. He wears that thing everywhere. And something red, a red shirt.…“

Petra tries to roll her eyes but swallows her snarky remark when her name’s called.

„We need you here, can you help?“ Conny asks and Petra nods grabs her PADD and moves on.

It’s getting busy and Petra starts with sorting the patients. Who needs to be treated first, who can wait, that kind of work. It’s not too hard, but some like to disagree with her choices.

Someone literally grabs her attention by grabbing her uniform.

She turns around to a young woman in dirty engineering clothing, her face covered in an interesting pattern of black stripes on white skin.

„Sorry,“ the woman says, „My friend had an accident, he needs help.“

„That’s what we’re here for, what happened?“

She looks around for said friend but there are too many people around to be able to clearly see who’s with her.

„He fell down and hit his head on the grating. He has… vomited?“

She has an intriguing accent, stumbling over words she isn’t exactly familiar with.

„Is he feeling dizzy?“ Petra makes a gesture with her hands and the woman nods, almost excited over the prospect of being understood.

„Yes, and he has pain in his head. And he can’t really see well.“

„Can he hold his head up? Has he had to vomit more than once?“

„Only one time,“ the woman says, stops and holds out her hand as if she has just remembered something, „I am Jaylah.“

„Petra,“ she shakes Jaylah’s hand and spots one of the doctors, beckoning him over, „This is Dr. van den Corput. He’s going to look at your friend, right now. Just follow him.“

 

Time goes by when there’s a lot of work to do. There’s no time to think about anything that isn’t work-related and everything goes by in a rush of work, work, work.

„So, the date…“ Will says when they get off work, „Scott says he doesn’t have time today. Something unexpected happened. But tomorrow would be fine.“

„Fine with me,“ Petra said and ignored Conny’s excited grin, „All I want right now is to go home and soak in my bathtub until my fingers are really wrinkly.“

„You’re gross,“ Conny says and Petra winks at her. „You love me anyway.“

 

**Blind**

„Good to hear you’re up again,“ Jim says and pats Scotty on the shoulder. He hits a bit harder than necessary or maybe it’s just Scotty who’s more sensible than usual, but he has to bite back the wince that’s threatening to fall from his lips at the pain that’s shooting up into his head.

„’s not the first time me head met the floor, Captain,“ Scotty jokes and soothes his headache with a sip of his scotch, „And it’s not gonna be the las’ time either.“

„Don’t let Bones hear that,“ Jim jokes and looks around the bar, „Are you waiting for someone? Jaylah? Lieutenant Romane?“

„Nah,“ Scotty smiles and refrains from shaking his head. He’s already found out that shaking his head isn’t a good idea yet, „Jaylah’s got a date. Jus’ thought I would take me drink down here with you in case the date doesnae go the way she wants it to go.“

„Someone I know?“ Jim asks and looks around again as if he’s waiting for someone.

Scotty smiles knowingly.

„Someone yanno,“ he admits, „But someone who wants to keep it a secre’. Ye donnae have to keep me company, yanno. Go and find tha’ lass I see ye looking for.“

Jim has the decency to look embarrassed but smiles when he gets up.

„Don’t wait too long for her, Scotty. She might not come.“

Scotty smiles up at him and bids him goodbye by raising his glass. Nodding isn’t a good idea either.

He watches his Captain leave and recognizes the blond haired girl he’s falling into step with right outside the Restaurant.

Can’t fool an old man, Scotty thinks and smiles to himself, taking another sip of his scotch.

„Excuse me,“ a soft female voice mutters next to him, „Are you Scott?“

-

Petra won’t admit it to anyone else but herself, but dressing up, even after a workday, is kind of exciting in itself. Doing your hair, your makeup, going through your stuff and thinking about what, or rather who might be waiting for you.

She chooses her clothes carefully, pulls out a brightly colored skirt with a blouse, a casual jeans and cardigan outfit and still picks the same thing she always picks, her favorite short black dress with the sheer lace sleeves. It’s not too fancy, so if that Scott isn’t going to show or the date turns out bad, she will still feel comfortable enough and if he turns out to be one of those one-in-a-million-guys Conny always talks about, she’s dressed up.

Petra has had a day of work, which means running a lot, so she doesn’t even hesitate to put on flats, pulls out her little blue purse she needs for Scott to find her and leaves, her heart beating a little faster than necessary.

 

She arrives a little early at the restaurant. More than half of the tables are filled, but it’s not crowded and she walks towards the bar, looking out for a guy in a black leather jacket and a red shirt.

Black leather jackets seem to be a trend nowadays because at least five guys are wearing them, but two of them are with a woman and one is at least 70 years old.

The only other two remaining are talking to each other at the bar and Petra starts to walk past them, deciding that it won’t hurt to take a drink while she waits.

One of the guys gets up when she’s passed them and she catches his next words more by accident than by anything else.

„Don’t wait too long for her, Scotty. She might not come.“

Petra almost stops dead in her tracks but manages to walk on, stumbling over her words three times when she orders her drink and looking back at the guys with a heart that’s racing in her chest.

Scotty wears a red shirt under his leader jacket, she realizes when he turns a bit to watch the other man go. He doesn’t look in her direction but watches his friend leave and an almost sad smile passes over his lips.

Petra studies him while she still can.

He looks nice. He must be at least forty, which makes him about 5 years older than her and compared to the stunningly attractive Captain of the Enterprise he has just talked too, he’s a bit…

No, Petra thinks, you can’t compare them. That’s like comparing a summer breeze with a storm.

Scotty looks nice and comforting and judging his friend’s comment, he might be just as afraid of this blind date going wrong than she is.

The barkeeper hands her her drink and Petra takes a big sip of it. She’s going to talk to this guy at the other end of the bar, who looks like he’s as sweet as a bundle of puppies but also sadder than any nice person deserved to be. If he wasn’t her type, so be it, but he shouldn’t be sad because of her.

„Excuse me,“ she mumbles when she’s next to him, the courage leaving her already, „Are you Scott?“

He turns around and there is surprise in his eyes. A pleasant one, she notices and a warm feeling spreads through her.

„Montgomery Scott,“ he agrees and she stretches out her hand, „I’m Petra. Petra Bakker. My friend Will has told me about you. Well, he said you’re better friends with Peter than with Will, but he’s only saying good things too.“

Scott looks confused for a moment and Petra can’t blame him. She’s prone to babble when she’s nervous.

„Well this,“ she clears her throat, „I mean, this isn’t my first time doing this and I don’t know about you, but… well, how about we grab something to eat?“

Her voice gets a little shakier by the end because the confusion never leaves his face and he looks at her like she’s talking in a language he doesn’t understand.

Or maybe she just read him wrong?

„But… I mean, if you don’t want to,“ she mumbles and tries to keep the hurt out of her voice.

That brings him back to life and he all but jumps out of his seat.

„No, no, I dinnae, I jus’- well, I was surprised. Such a beautiful lass, it would be a pleasure…“

He almost bows before her, taking her hand carefully into his as if he’s afraid she’s going to turn around and bolt out of the restaurant any second.

 

**Date**

They get seated immediately and smile awkwardly at each other over the small table.

„What are you drinking?“ Petra asks out of curiosity.

„Scotch,“ he says, „I admit that I’m a bit biased when it comes to drinks. Comes from my heritage.“

She wrinkles her nose.

„I don’t know what’s so good about Scotch that everyone’s drinking it.“

Petra bits on her tongue, cursing herself for speaking her mind when she wanted to be polite.

But Scott smiles brightly at her, obviously amused.

„You only say tha’ because you haven’t tried it, lass.“

„I did,“ she protests, „It tasted awful.“

„What do you drink, then?“ He asks, eyeing her glass.

„Sherry,“ she admits without shame because if Scott can survive her insulting his favorite drink, she will survive him insulting hers.

„Ach, a sweet lass it is, then?“ He jokes and looks at his own glass before pushing it into her direction.

„Take a sip of ye water and then try the Scotch. And donnae compare it in sweetness.“

She hesitates for a moment, but his smile is bright and almost innocent, or at least as innocent as a grown man can be and she thinks, why not, and does as he’s asked her.

He waits patiently for her to taste the drink and smiles when she dares to take another tiny sip to explore the taste on her tongue.

„It’s not bad,“ she admits, „But it’s not my favorite drink.“

„Dosnnae have to be,“ he says, „But I tell you, everyone, who doesnae like Scotch hasn’t tried to good stuff.“

She laughs and holds her Sherry out to him.

„I can say the same.“

He eyes her drink skeptically and she puts it in front of him.

„You have to try,“ she dares him, „I tried yours too.“

Scott pulls a face before smiling easily.

„You win, lass,“ he admits and nips from her drink, shuddering when the sweetness hits his tongue.

„Ye must be made out of sugar,“ he exclaims and pushes the drink back, smiling up at the waiter who has just arrived.

 

It is easy to talk to Scott.

„Scotty,“ he tells her after five minutes of sitting at the table, „Me friends call me Scotty.“

„Is it a coincidence,“ she asks, „That you’re a Scot called Scotty? Or did your parents just have an exceptional sense of humor?“

„Ye know what?“ He says, „I donnae know. No one asked me that before… What are ye parents like?“

Petra tells him about her parents without even hesitating, surprised by herself. She can still recall her last relationships, where she found this kind of information too intimate to be discussed on the first three dates.

But Scotty tells her about his grandmother in return, about Scotland as he knows it from visiting her and she tells him about the Starfleet ship she was born on and what she knows of the Nederlands from her parents.

„I’ve never been there,“ she admits easily, „I liked the starships, have lived with space right outside the hull for my whole life. But I do want to see mountains one day, terran mountains.“

There is life and commotion in the restaurant, people coming, people going, but they talk and talk, only stopping when their food arrives.

 

„I’m sorry,“ Petra says after her first bite, „This terrible nosy of me, but did you hit your head recently?“

She can see him tense and fears for the comfortable atmosphere they’ve established.

He smiles awkwardly.

„Yesterday,“ he admits, „Ye are a damn good nurse.“

„Just observant,“ she replies and stretches out her hand to touch his face, to hold him still.

There’s the light stubble of a beard under her fingers that is trying to distract her and she’s amazed by the fact that his eyes, even as dull as they are now, are a delicious confusing swirl of blue and brown.

_Delicious? Petra, get a grip on yourself._

„Have you been taking your medicine?“ She asks.

„Yes.“

She narrows her eyes at him and he smiles softly.

„Why are you drinking alcohol then? And why are you out of bed? Did no one tell you that you need rest?“

He has the decency to look caught. „I donnae have an excuse for the Scotch. Well, I have. Scotch is medicine.“

„Not for a concussion, you fool,“ she says but it comes out less sharp than she had intended, making her sound like a doting wife. She blushes furiously and tries to hide it by staring down at her food. He waits for her to regain her composure, which is so sweet that she’s almost blushing again.

„No more Scotch for you, Sir,“ she tells him then and takes his glass away, moving his glass of water towards him.

„Ye have to drink it then,“ he tells her, „Cannae waste the good stuff.“

 

They dig back into their food and it’s so good that it makes Petra feel a bit less guilty about keeping the poor out of bed, away from rest.

She can barely keep herself from moaning in absolute bliss about that food, but a tiny sigh escapes her lips and her cheeks start burning again.

„It’s good?“ He asks and blinks at her. She nods and he smiles.

„Mine too. Wan’ to try?“

„Oh, I don’t- I can’t-“ She doesn’t even know how she wants the sentence to end but he smiles at her anyway.

„Vegetarian?“ He asks and she shakes her head.

„Just shy,“ she tries to joke and he laughs softly and cuts of a piece of his meat, gathering the side dish on the fork too and holding it out for her.

She’s blushing furiously when she moves forward to take it off the fork but damn, his food tastes almost better than hers and why not be a bit bold for a while?

„Do you want to try mine too?“ She asks and he smiles like he has just waited for her to ask this question.

 

They share desert while talking about their favorite music and she laughs about Scotty complaining about the music taste of one of his coworkers… He’s exaggerating and there’s so much love speaking out of him for every one of his coworkers that a small part of Petra just wants to go out of this restaurant, become an engineer and start to work with him.

„The Beastie Boys,“ he exclaims, „The lass finds that old music in her house and it’s loud and distractin’ but she loves it. Listens to it all day and makes everyone listen to it too. If she wasn’t so good at engineering,“ he grumbles playfully and leans forward a bit, taking another spoonful of their shared desert.

 

It’s night when they walk home, the artificial lights dimmed to give the population of Yorktown the pretense of night and day.

„I’ll walk you home,“ Scotty insists when they step outside the restaurant. They are the last couple to leave and Petra’s tired but also bursting with energy.

„You need to go home and rest,“ she tells him but hopes for him to disagree.

„’m not gonna let you walk home alone,“ he says instead and holds out his arm for her but stops when she puts hers through.

„Ye must be freezing,“ he says and shrugs out of his leather jacket, „Donnae ye have a jacket?“

„The dress has sleeves,“ Petra quips while thinking about the artificial climate of Yorktown that is always the same.

„That are no sleeves,“ Scotty disagrees, „They donnae even cover your elbows.“

He holds out his jacket for her and the big part of Petra that knows she will be fine without it, falls suddenly silent and she slips into it.

It’s warm and cozy and it smells musky and like… home. It smells like coming home.

There’s no way she’s ever going to take this jacket off again.

 

The walk home doesn’t take nearly as long as Petra wants it too. They’re lost in chatter, standing in front of the main entrance of her apartment block her eyes wander over his face and towards his lips, again and again, wondering if he will kiss her and asking herself if she would allow it. She has established her own rules for dating, has decided on them years ago but this is the first time that she actually wants to break them.

„What are ye thinking abou’, Lass?“ Scotty asks and she blinks and blushes.

„I was thinking about kissing you,“ the words fall from her lips without her meaning to and without her trying to hold them back. It’s only been one night and she’s already getting addicted to how easy it is to talk to him, „But I don’t kiss on the first date.“

He smiles at her, a small smile filled with warmth and coziness and she hopes he will kiss her anyway, but this is Scotty, she realizes, and she likes him because she’s learned today that he will respect her even when she doesn’t like Scotch and eats more than her fair share of their dessert.

He won’t kiss her when it means breaking those rules and the part of her that’s still got it’s common sense tells her that she needs to keep this man around.

„But a hug would be okay?“ She offers and it sounds more like a question than an offer, a little bit shaky even, but he opens his arms and envelops her in them and there’s only one thought left in Petra.

This is what hugs are supposed to feel like.

Her face is pressed against his chest, she can hear his heartbeat. His shirt smells faintly of laundry detergent, which means that it’s washed and not just replicated and there’s that musky smell again that must be from himself and if she would never be able to move from this place again, it would be fine with her, because his warm hands are pressed against her back and his face is pressed into her hair so she can feel every breath he takes on the sensitive skin of her neck.

-

**Confusion**

Scotty can’t keep the smile off his face.

„You look happy,“ Jaylah greets him and pulls her chair back to sit down on the other side of the table.

„I am,“ he agrees easily and pours her a coffee, „Ye date was a success, I see?“

Jaylah smiles back at him and takes a sip of the hot drink, „It was. And your evening?“

„I met someone,“ Scotty says, „And I donnae wanna say it too loud in case it doesnae work ou’, but she’s amazing.“

 

„Someone I know?“

„Donnae think so… But spill the beans, lass, how’s wee Chekov doing?“

Jaylah smirks into her coffee, not saying anything, but the blush on her white skin says more than words could portray.

-

Petra is humming her favorite tune when she steps into the nurses’ station and pours herself a coffee. She’s slept not nearly enough for the fact that there’s a full work day ahead, but she still feels well rested and there was a text message on her phone when she woke up.

Although she would have liked to tell Conny that this had been her last Blind Date, there was no denying that it had been the best date of her life and she owed it to Conny and Will.

„What happened yesterday?“ Conny greets her when she enters and Will is right behind her, his face a mixture of concern and curiosity.

„The Date?“ Petra asks and smiles, „It was great.“

Conny stops in the middle of grabbing a PADD and stares at her.

„What?! What are you talking about? Scott called and asked where you were.“

Petra looks at her in disbelief. „I was there. We ate together and left the Restaurant around midnight.“

„You ate together?“ Will asks, „With whom did you eat?“

„Scotty. Montgomery Scott. He sat at the bar when I came, Leather jacket and red shirt like you said he would wear.“

„Mont- Montgomery Scott?“ Will looks at Petra and then at Conny, „I don’t know a Montgomery Scott. We set you up with a Scott Porter, works in the med-bay of the Enterprise.“

Petra looks at him, her mouth wide open, her thoughts a mess.

„But Scotty-,“ she mumbles helplessly and takes the PADD Conny hands her.

„Don’t stress it,“ Conny says, „You had a great date, right? That’s all that matters.“

 

When lunch break draws near Petra feels like the blush has been burned into her cheeks.

Because if Scotty hadn’t been her blind date, everything he has said and done makes a bit more sense now. His surprise when she asked him to eat with her. From his point of view- well she had been bold enough to ask him out.

The only thing that keeps her sane is the memory of that hug, remembering his arms around her, his scent washing over her and his heartbeat giving her a rhythm to go by, makes her realize that being bold had been exactly the right thing.

And when she sits down to eat the sandwich she’s brought with her, her communicator chirps with a new message.

_Well rested, sugar?_

She smiles, her blush burning a little bit brighter and types a quick answer.

_I am, but are you? How’s your head?_

Her communicator chirps with a new message before she can put it down again.

_Ye should know, ye’ve been running through it all day._

_Ach, that was cheesy, donnae mind me language, lass._

She smiles at the fact that he even writes in that cute Scottish accent and bites onto the side of her cheek, trying to come up with an equally cute answer.

_You might be cold, then, because I still have your jacket?_

„Who are you texting?“ Conny asks and pulls out a chair at her table, sitting down next to her, trying to read the message arriving.

„Scotty,“ Petra replies, blushing again and turning the communicator upside down so Conny can’t read anything.

There’s something innocent to Scotty and her, well, whatever it is, that she fears to lose by talking about it. And she doesn’t want to loose anything of it.

„Any chance we met that Scotty?“ Will asks and sits down on the other side of Petra, nudging her with his elbow, „I wanna know who’s so great that he gets you all blushy mushy.“

-

„Where’s Chekov?“ Scotty asks after he’s checked Jaylah’s luggage for the last time, making sure she has everything she needs with her.

„He has to work,“ she replies, „We said goodbye in the morning already.“

„Ye’re going to be fine, lass?“ Scotty asks, concern lacing his tone, „Yanno ye can call anytime?“

„It will work,“ she assures him, but there’s fear in her eyes and her voice is the tiniest bit shaky, „I can do that.“

„Ye can, lass,“ he tells her and puts his hand on her arm, „We’re yer family and we are rooting for ye. Come on, le’ me hug ye.“

He pulls her into his arms and she clutches onto him like a frightened kid, which she is, he realizes with a heavy heart. She’s too young to be alone in this world.

„Holo-call once a week,“ he mumbles into her ear, „Text message or short call once a day or I will personally come down to earth to talk some sense into ya.“

„Yes dad,“ she jokes but he can hear the uncried tears in her voice and rubs her back with his hands.

„’s all good,“ he tells her, „’m gonna be here when ye come back.“

-

„Okay, tuna sandwich for Will, chicken for Conny, cookies with extra chocolate chips for the Boss,“ Petra mumbles, looking over her list to see if there’s something she has forgotten.

Doesn’t look like it.

She stops in front of a crossroads, looking both ways.

She’s right next to the shuttle station and she stops and smiles and looks over all the people welcoming their friends or saying goodbye. Petra loves stations, loves the air of change and hope and happiness that’s mostly hanging around, especially in a place like Yorktown where visitors come to see their friends and family again when their ships come for restocking.

She almost misses him, turns around again to go back to work when she spots a head of unusual white hair and realizes it’s the girl she’s met this week.

Jaylah, her mind supplies her with the name and she looks a bit closer and realizes the guy next to her is Scotty and everything makes sense.

Her friend with the concussion is Scotty, the Scotty with the concussion she went on a date with.

She’s still pondering if she should go over and say hi when Scotty pulls Jaylah into a hug and Petras’ mouth runs dry because even from afar she can tell what this hug must feel like.

Oh, nonsense, she tells herself, they’re just friends. He didn’t kiss her, he just hugged her.

But they’re her insecurity again, bubbling up inside of her, doubting everything she has been so sure of before.

It starts with small thoughts, small doubts.

Maybe Scotty hugs all his friends like that. Maybe Scotty shares his drinks, his food, his jacket with all his friends.

He’s been warm and welcoming and nice to her all the time and she’s felt special to him, but that doesn’t mean she  _is_ special to him, right?

 

When she’s back at the hospital the good mood she has been in since the date two days ago is almost gone. She feels lost and unsure of herself, her appetite gone and her voice a bit shaky.

„You’re okay?“ Will asks and tries to hug her. She dodges his arms and steps to the side.

„Yeah,“ she insists, „Just… I need to get back to work.“

He looks at her, says nothing and she knows he’s just going to send Conny after her because Conny can read her mind even when she doesn’t want her too.

„So…“ Conny says to her when they’re working through the PADDs, sorting through the Data, „You’re not so sure of your Scotty anymore and I don’t like that. If he’s done or said something that makes him look like a dick-“

„He hasn’t,“ Petra protests with a weak voice, „I’m just not sure anymore if I’m as special to him as he is to me.“

„Go out with Scott,“ Conny offers and Petra looks at her like she’s gone mad.

„Look,“ Conny puts her PADD to the side, „You’re my best friend and you’re lovely, but you never believe in yourself. That Scotty-dude made you feel appreciated and that’s something I want you to feel a lot more. And it’s not like you’re married or something, it was just one date. And the other Scott, well, he still wants to meet you. If you go on a date with him, it wouldn’t be cheating, it would just give you the confidence you need to deal with Scotty number 2 when it’s necessary.“

Petra chews on her lower lip. She doesn’t want to go on a date with anyone else but Scotty Montgomery, but she doesn’t feel like fighting, doesn’t know what words could make Conny believe her that she means it.

So she gives in. Again. And wonders if she’s ever stood up for herself before.

-

„Hey, Chekov, wee man,“ Scotty greets the Navigator with a wave of his hand, pulling him into something like a hug as a greeting and ignores the red-rimmed eyes, „Ye wan’ to get together this evening? Ye still need ta show me that movie ye’ve been bragging abou’.“

„We can do zat,“ Chekov mumbles halfheartedly, „But I have work to do… until… 1800?“

„Sounds great,“ Scotty agrees and sends the boy his way, deciding that he needs to get back to engineering anyway. He’s had four days of rest now, that should be enough for his head to heal, right?

 

**Misunderstanding**

They meet in another restaurant this time because Petra couldn’t bear the thought to stumble upon Scotty again. It looks eerily similar to the one though and she has to refrain from looking around every five minutes.

Scott Porter is late. Just seven minutes, but Petra spends it at the bar with a sherry to calm her nerves. Scott sticks out of the mass of people like a sore thumb when he arrives, his red shirt and black leather jacket brand new as if he had just replicated them.

He probably has, she thinks and smiles shyly when he steps up and kisses her on the cheeks without asking first.

„What are you drinking?“ He asks and looks down at her glass that’s already half empty.

„Sherry,“ she admits and he pulls a face.

„Really? I wouldn’t recommend that choice,“ he lectures her, „Do you know how much sugar is in that?“

She thinks of her curves and the soft skin of her belly and fights back the urge to go home and curl up in bed with a tube of ice cream, extra sweet.

„What would you recommend then?“ She asks and he orders two glasses of Scotch for them, the brand name familiar to her ears and when she tries it she realizes why.

It’s the exact same scotch she had tried five years ago, a cheap brand that burned down her throat and makes her want to cough her lungs up.

They are lead to their table and he orders food for both of them after telling her that he’s into cooking, knows the chef and is familiar with the menu.

But you’re not familiar with me, she wants to say but keeps quiet instead and fiddles with the cutlery while he tells her everything about himself.

He’s just finished his training as a doctor on the Enterprise. He says he’s the CMO’s favorite and she tries to ask him what he thinks about Bones, trying to show him she’s familiar with the crew he’s serving with, but he’s already switching topics again, telling her how hard the courses where and that he knows at least two of his study group who dropped out and got into engineering instead.

„I urged them not to,“ he tells her when their food order arrives, salad for her and something delicious looking for him. She likes salad, she really does, but she can’t help but feel patronized by his choice for her.

„I mean, if the training was too hard, they could have still settled for being a nurse, right?“ He laughs and takes a bit of his food, not realizing that his words are like a slap in the face for her.

„How’s the food?“ He asks, „Good, right?“

„You do realize I am a nurse?“ She interrupts him, careful to keep her voice calm.

„Oh yes, I know. But Peter mentioned that you have a lot potential. I am sure if you got back into the courses you could be a Doctor soon. I could vouch for you.“

„I don’t need you to vouch for me,“ Petra cuts him off, her voice sharper now, „I like being a nurse. It’s my dream job. I’m a motherly type and I think that gives me my potential.“

„Oh well, at your age it’s only natural that you don’t want to change your profession and want to have kids instead.“

„At my age?“ Petra asks and holds up her hand when he starts to say something, „No, I don’t want to hear it. I think it’s best if I go home now, thank you for the salad and your time but I don’t think we’re getting along.“

„Oh, I’m sorry if you misunderstood me,“ he says, his voice thick with annoyance, „But maybe you couldn’t make a scene and we eat up and go separate ways afterward?“

Annoyance bubbles up inside of her again but what she has said before is more than she has ever said in her own defense before on a date and she just doesn’t have the will to fight right now.

„Fine,“ she says and stays quiet, only offering the shortest possible answer when he tries to make conversation again. Not that he needs an answer, anyway, he’s mostly trying to talking about himself or his experiences anyway.

When they’ve finished he looks at her, offering her a smile that’s probably supposed to look seducing. It looks fake to her.

„You look like you want to eat desert,“ he says and she fights down the anger again, deciding that he’s not worth the effort.

„Oh no,“ she says with as much fake politeness she can muster, „There would be too much sugar in it. We should just wrap it up and call it a night.“

He throws her another smile and a wink and it’s almost funny how he doesn’t seem to understand what she’s hinting at. Maximum annoyance.

„I can walk home alone just fine,“ she tells him instead, „Thanks for the evening, but don’t call or text me, okay? Goodbye.“

She leaves without looking back and if she’s wrapping herself into Scotty’s jacket when she’s back home than no one needs to know that, right?

-

It’s 0800 and Scotty’s head hurts again. He feels dizzy and sick too and he’s not sure if a number of drinks he has had the evening before are the cause of it if he’s just lovesick – he chuckles at that thought – or if he’s overdone himself at work.

He thinks about just taking a painkiller but has a better idea.

-

It’s 1100 the next morning when she steps into the waiting room, calling for the next patient. She chokes on air when she recognizes him.

„Scotty,“ she greets him with pleasant surprise and a quick skip in her heartbeat.

„Sugar,“ he mumbles in greeting when he steps up to her, his voice low enough so she’s the only one to catch it. Her face still feels like it’s burning.

„What seems to be the problem?“ She asks when she leads him into the next free examination room.

„I’ve been missing ye face,“ he says and she chokes again, coughs hard enough to make him look worried.

„Don’t say such things,“ she mumbles embarrassed and points towards the Bio-bed, „Please lay down.“

She watches the monitoring of his data, painfully aware of how close he is, but still unsure of herself. Especially after that disastrous date. Conny might have been right, but it still felt like she was cheating on him.

„Petra?“ He asks and she blinks when she realizes he’s picked up how insecure she’s feeling because he’s addressing her with her name instead of the cute nickname he’s given her.

„Yes?“ She answers when Conny pushes the Curtain to the side and smiles at her, „Haven’t seen you  yet, how was the date?“ She asks and Petra almost drops her PADD in her frenzy to get Conny out of the exam room. Not only is it highly unprofessional to talk about your love life in front of patients, it also gives away the impression of something there isn’t and the one who’s getting this wrong impression is the one person she wants to know her how she really is.

„Not now,“ she hisses, „And it was awful!“ She steps back inside where Scotty has pushed himself up again, ready to leave.

„I’m sorry,“ she says, „I don't…, it's… you have to stay on the Bed, I…“

„No need to apologize, lass,“ he mumbles and there’s sadness in his eyes again, the same sadness she’s seen right before she had approached him that night.

„No, I need to,“ she insists, trying to find that flicker of confidence again that helped her deal with the other Scott, „I don’t know if you noticed but I… well Will and Conny set up a blind date for me with a guy called Scott from the Enterprise and I thought it was you when I approached you and it was such a lovely date and I was so happy but then it turned out it wasn’t you and I wasn’t sure and the other Scott still insisted on meeting me and we met yesterday and it didn’t mean anything and I know we’re not together but I don’t really want to date anyone but you.“

She stops and looks at him, trying to catch her breath while he blinks up at her in something that can only be confusion.

„And I don’t want to push anything on you,“ she breathes softly, „I mean, I don’t know if you have a girlfriend or not or if you were just so nice to me because you’re so nice to everyone.“

„I’m not that nice to everyone,“ he says and stops when she almost flinches at that comment.

„Ye donnae believe me?“

„It’s just that… I just thought our hug was… special,“ she admits, her cheeks ablaze, „And then I saw you hug your friend and I wasn’t sure about it being special anymore…“

She stops, unsure of herself and looks back at the monitor, unable to read the data, her vision blurry from nervousness.

He stands up and there’s something in his eyes that makes her brain just… stop.

„I do hug me friend when they need it,“ he says and her heart breaks a little at that, threatening to break even more, but then he smiles and it makes his face light up and her heart skips a step, „But that doesnnae mean our hug wasnae special. Ye know what made it special?“

„No?“ She breathes and he opens his arms.

„Can I show ye?“

It feels just like the last time, just like coming home all over again.

His face is pressed into her hair but she can still hear him whisper.

„I love hugging ye,“ he mumbles, tightening his arms around her, „feels like nothin’s a problem anymore. Ye fit right into me arms.“

„Is that what makes it feel special?“, she asks and can feel him shake his head.

„No. It’s that even though I’d rather kiss ye instead, I donnae wanna stop hugging ye.“

 

They start dating, the date marked in their calendars and saved in their minds.

It’s not going to be easy, they know that. Not with being a member of Starfleet – which is probably still the riskiest job there is – and the day of the Enterprise leaving, a threat of the future.

But they make the days worth and Petra has said it often enough and will say it a lot more times too, but there’s no better remedy out there for worries of all kind than a real Scotty hug. And she has to know, she’s a nurse.

 

**Present**

„How’s Jaylah?“ Petra asks when they meet at the center of Yorktown.

They have their own little bench there – at least they like to think of it as their own – and the never ending warm season allows them to enjoy quite a lot evenings outside.

„Ach, she misses the lot. Her studies are going great, though. But I left her to talk to Chekov. They need their time.“

He threads her fingers through his and squeezes them lightly, looking over the water.

„Yanno, I’ve been thinkin’,“ he says, „I donnae wanna push somethin’ on ye, but I’d really like it if ye could come onto the Enterprise with me.“

Petra sighs, squeezing his fingers too.

It’s adorable how his accent gets thicker when he’s nervous.

„Me too,“, she says, „But I can’t. It’s ironic, really, because I applied to Yorktown because I wanted to settle down with my friends by my side. I’m 35, I’m not getting younger and I just couldn’t take another transfer to a different ship just to find out there was no one for me on it. My parents haven’t stopped asking about grandchildren since forever and I hoped I would meet someone here in Yorktown and I did, just that it’s someone who isn’t going to stay here.“

„I can stay with ye-,“ he starts to say but she shakes her head.

„No. You belong on the Enterprise. Maybe I do too. I’ve talked to Van den Corput, my Boss. They’ve shortened my contract to only one more year but the Enterprise will be leaving before that…“

He looks at her for a long time without saying a word before he lifts their intertwined hands and kisses every one of her fingers.

„Ya parents will just have ta wait a wee bit longer for their grandchildren.“

-

It’s not always easy.

Petra thinks about just quitting more than once, her job, but never her relationship.

Scotty is itching to get off the ground again and keeps himself grounded with working on the Enterprise and coming home to her.

She thinks about faking a pregnancy to get an early leave when not even a wedding – small and simple and sweet – allows her an early leave but dismisses the thought almost immediately and asks for a Scotty-hug instead. They will do it in honesty or not at all.

-

And then the Enterprise leaves.

Petra takes the day off and Scotty spends his last night in Yorktown at her apartment that is now theirs.

Their kisses are slow, giving them the illusion that they have all the time in the world, savoring every moment, every touch, every smile.

She tries to memorize everything, tries to burn every inch of his face into her mind, how he smells when he hugs her, how it feels when he loves her.

He leaves his leather jacket and a bottle of Scotch behind and takes her favorite shirt and her heart with him.

They’ll make it work, because they want too because they’ve been ready to start their life together for a long time now, maybe even before they met.

 

Three months later Petry is still missing him like crazy, even though hearing his voice everyday soothes a bit of the pain.

She counts the days until she will see him again and learns that her period is late.

Like two months late.

 

„I have a surprise for ye,“ Scotty greets her when he calls the next day.

She’s tracing the lines of his face with her eyes, wishing to be able to just grab him and pull him out of that blurry video.

„Me too,“ she answers, „But you go first.“

„We’re coming back for some repairs. There were some unexpected accidents… nothing to worry dear, but we need a repair of the hull and some of the crew wants to leave.“

„Will they need nurses?“ Petra asks and Scotty nods.

„Sure, but ya contract isnae finished yet, or- Wait, is that the surprise?“

„Part of it,“ she admits with a smile, „Turns out they cancel your contract if you manage to get pregnant.“

„But ye aren’t-“ He stops, his eyes going wide, „No way! Sugar! Donnae joke with me, I’m an old man!“

„Not that old! Looks like our last night together was indeed a special one. And if Captain Kirk allows it, I will work on the Enterprise until and after birth.“

„Is that safe?“ Scotty asks all worried father-to-be.

„I’m a nurse,“ Petra laughs, „So I think I can take care of myself. And even if it wasn’t safe, I wouldn’t want to have this child without you by my side.“

„Heavens,“ Scotty says and sniffs, „Ye are going ta make me cry.“

 

**Future**

Six months later half of the senior crew is waiting outside of med-bay where the unmistaken sound of a newborn crying is heard. There’s an actual smile on the face of Dr. McCoy when he places the youngest member of the Enterprise crew into Scotty’s waiting hands.

 

„It’s a girl,“ the doctor announces minutes later to the waiting friends, giving the parents a moment for themselves, „You’re about to say ‘Hi’ to Maude Scott. Don’t y'all scare the kiddo.“

 

„She looks like ye,“ Scotty mumbles, one arm around Petra, one arm around the little girl that’s drinking eagerly, „She’s got ya nose.“

„I hope she gets your eyes,“ Petra mumbles back sleepily, „And if she doesn’t, we will just try again.“

„Donnae say such things, sugar,“ Scotty mumbles and kisses his wife’s temple, „Ye are going to make me all eager.“

 

There’s a saying… Love blooms…

It has never sounded so right, Scotty thinks, because looking down at his daughter, not even an hour old and his wife, his heart grows and  _blooms_ , just like flowers do.


End file.
